Career and Education Opportunities for Sports Trainers in Tallahassee, Florida

There is a wide variety of career and education opportunities for sports trainers in the Tallahassee, Florida area. The national trend for sports trainers sees this job pool growing by about 37.0% over the next eight years. Sports trainers generally evaluate, advise, and treat athletes to assist recovery from injury, avoid injury, or maintain peak physical fitness.

The average wage in the general category of Athletic and Occupational jobs is $44 per hour or $83,720 per year in Florida, and an average of $44 per hour or $84,458 per year nationwide. Sports trainers earn less than people working in the category of Athletic and Occupational generally in Florida and less than people in the Athletic and Occupational category nationally. Sports trainers work in a variety of jobs, including: clinical instructor, fitness specialist, and sports medicine trainer.

There is one school within twenty-five miles of Tallahassee where you can study to be a sports trainer, among nine schools of higher education total in the Tallahassee area. The most common level of education for sports trainers is a Bachelor's degree. It will take about four years to learn to be a sports trainer if you already have a high school diploma.

CAREER DESCRIPTION: Sports Trainer

Sports Trainer video from the State of New Jersey Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development

Sports trainers advise athletes on the proper use of apparatus. They also massage body parts to relieve soreness and bruises. Equally important, sports trainers have to conduct an initial assessment of an athlete's injury or illness to furnish emergency or continued care, and to establish whether they should be referred to physicians for definitive diagnosis and treatment. They are often called upon to formulate and implement comprehensive athletic injury and illness prevention programs. They are expected to recommend special diets to further optimize athletes' health, increase their stamina, or alter their weight. Finally, sports trainers talk with coaches to decide on protective apparatus.

Every day, sports trainers are expected to be able to evaluate problems as they arise. They need to articulate ideas and problems. It is also important that they piece together evidence to, in some sense, diagnose what is going on in a situation.

It is important for sports trainers to conduct research and furnish instruction on subject matter pertaining to athletic training or sports medicine. They are often called upon to lead stretching exercises for team members before games and practices. Somewhat less frequently, sports trainers are also expected to assess and report the progress of recovering athletes to coaches and physicians.

Sports trainers sometimes are asked to perform team-support duties such as running errands and stocking supplies. And finally, they sometimes have to accompany injured athletes to hospitals.

Like many other jobs, sports trainers must have a strong concern for others and be reliable.

Similar jobs with educational opportunities in Tallahassee include:

Licensed Practical Nurse. Care for ill, injured, or disabled persons in hospitals, nursing homes, and similar institutions. May work under the supervision of a registered nurse. Licensing required.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Sports Trainer Training

Florida State University - Tallahassee, FL

Florida State University, 211 Westcott Bldg, Tallahassee, FL 32306-1037. Florida State University is a large university located in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a public school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 38,717 students and an admission rate of 47%. Florida State University has a bachelor's degree program in Athletic Training/Trainer which graduated thirteen students in 2008.

CERTIFICATIONS

AFAA Challenge Exam:
Any AFAA Certification may be challenged, however, it is recommended that you attend the preparatory workshop for that certification offered prior to the exams (Primary, Step, KickBoxing - 1 or 2 days, Personal Fitness Trainer - 3 days).

Certification in Sports Medicine:
The ABP in collaboration with the American Boards of Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, and Emergency Medicine offers a certificate of added qualifications in sports medicine.

Certified Health Fitness Specialist:
The ACSM Certified Health Fitness Specialist (HFS) is a degreed health and fitness professional qualified to pursue a career in university, corporate, commercial, hospital, and community settings.

Certified Personal Trainer:
The ACSM Certified Personal TrainerSM is a fitness professional involved in developing and implementing an individualized approach to exercise leadership in healthy populations and/or those individuals with medical clearance to exercise.

Sports Nutrition:
The optimum way for you or your clients to get the most out of their workouts and feel their best is to develop an energizing, performance-enhancing nutrition plan, tailored to their body's specific needs.

Functional Training Specialist:
The AFPA Functional Training Specialist Certification program is designed to teach the Functional Training protocols to improve total athleticism, enhances performance, and reduces injuries through exercise progressions that will spur development potential for specific movement patterns commonly use in sport.

Sports Conditioning Specialist:
The IFPA Sports Conditioning Specialist Certification(s) presents principles and practices from twenty-two of the finest and most respected strength and conditioning coaches.

LOCATION INFORMATION: Tallahassee, Florida

Tallahassee, Florida photo by Diligent Terrier

Tallahassee is located in Leon County, Florida. It has a population of over 171,922, which has grown by 14.1% over the last ten years. The cost of living index in Tallahassee, 89, is well below the national average. New single-family homes in Tallahassee are priced at $166,600 on average, which is far less than the state average. In 2008, three hundred new homes were built in Tallahassee, down from six hundred thirty-eight the previous year.

The three big industries for women in Tallahassee are educational services, public administration, and health care. For men, it is public administration, educational services, and accommodation and food services. The average commute to work is about 19 minutes. More than 45.0% of Tallahassee residents have a bachelor's degree, which is higher than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 19.8%, is higher than the state average.

The unemployment rate in Tallahassee is 7.1%, which is less than Florida's average of 11.3%.

The percentage of Tallahassee residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 37.6%, is less than both the national and state average. Abundant Life Foursquare Church, Advent Episcopal Church and Aftermath Church are among the churches located in Tallahassee. The most common religious groups are the Southern Baptist Convention, the Catholic Church and the United Methodist Church.

Tallahassee is home to the Miracle Plaza and the Tallahassee Community College Library as well as Old Fort Park and Alfred B Maclay Gardens State Park. Shopping malls in the area include Northwood Mall, Parkway Shopping Center and Tallahassee Mall. Visitors to Tallahassee can choose from Cactus Motel, Best Western Pride Inn Suites and Budget Inn for temporary stays in the area.